Night 47: Main Hallway, 2-Center

[donetakinorders.livejournal.com]

[from here]

It was times like this he had to wonder if he was the only damn person in this place who still cared about finding the fastest way home possible. Which probably wasn't true, but hell. Seeing as the only people he'd worked with so far had 'stealing books' as a goal or were setting up training nights, it was no damn wonder he was feeling more than a little pissed off about the whole thing.

But really, what it all boiled down to, everything that had been bothering him so far, was one simple fact. Raphael was homesick. He knew it too, would have been an idiot not to. He missed the city, the rumble of the subway felt distantly through the walls of their home, sneaking out for late night training sessions with his brothers where they ran across the rooftops playing tag or follow the leader. He missed the nights they'd spend drinking cocoa at April's place, talking all about the things they'd seen and done. But most of all he missed his family. He missed how Leo always had a plan of action and Donny had the tools for the job, while Mikey could keep things light and not too serious. Hell, he even missed Mikey's jokes and how often he talked about that stupid Battle Nexus trophy he'd won. But he didn't know where his brothers were or if they were even alive at all, if they'd been brought here as well and turned into something they weren't or if Karai had destroyed his family as well as his home.

It was the not knowing that hurt the worst, and Raphael had never been good at dealing with that kind of frustration. It made him want to find something, anything really, and just hit it. And keep on hitting it until things started making sense again or he came up with a way to actually leave this place or something.

And somehow he didn't think this little training session was going to help much there.

Comments

[exbride.livejournal.com]

As the sound of footsteps approached the empty hallway, something overhead twitched into life.

Floating at the center of the railed area which dipped below into the Sun Room was a girl in a red tunic, with gold bangles on her ankles and wrists and long, unkempt hair that obscured her face. She hung limp like a ragdoll, seemingly suspended by nothing, except for the presence of endless swords digging into her frame -- spiraling around her like sun rays and focusing on her midsection. Moaning, she tossed her head around and writhed in pain as they shifted restlessly, searching for new skin to pierce and hushing out human whispers.

A witch ...

An eerie red glow washed over the sight. Blood trickled down her bare legs and dripped off her toes. Anthy stirred at the presence of another patient, and so did the swords. They became noisier, hissing indignantly; three or four dislodged and pointed directly at him without yet crossing the rails.

"Help me," she croaked, eyes cracking open and boring into the other patient.

[revolutionise]

[From here. If Raph wants, he can join this thread. If not, Utena can cover his escape.]

Himemiya hadn't been at the top of the stairs. Utena hadn't really been expecting her to be at this point. She was running too fast for Himemiya to have made it this far ahead of her. "Himemiya, where are you?" Utena called out again, though she knew it wouldn't do much good. She was probably behind some doctor's door right now, and Utena wasn't there to stop any of what they were going to do to her. She had to find the right room. But where would it be? Where were those labs and offices? She couldn't remember the maps. All she knew was that they were up here somewhere.

"Damn it!" she cursed through her teeth as she hurried further down the hall, intent on forcing open any doors she could find down there. Even as she thought that, part of her wanted to hope that maybe Himemiya would be in the hallway's center, where they had faced monsters together the past two nights. There was just no way, though. If she had been taken, then there really was no way—

"Help me."

The voice, soft and cracked as it was, caught Utena's ear, and she turned toward it as she ran. A glint of light from her flashlight bounced back off a thin, metal something ahead of her. A lot of metal somethings, in fact - swords. Utena skidded to a stop and stood stock still at the sight before her. She had found Himemiya.

Hey, save her!

A wisp of a memory tickled the back of her mind.

The poor girl . . . Please, save her!

The memory was gone amid the sudden roiling, frothing panic Utena felt bursting through her mind and body.

"HIMEMIYA!"

[donetakinorders.livejournal.com]

Raphael froze as something moved up there, finally shaking him out of the thoughts that had chased themselves around and around his head since he'd left his room and making him think back to the few vague mentions of monsters he'd heard around the place. He hadn't really run into any of those things himself, but he knew better than most not to think that meant anything.

A soft moaning noise came from the indistinct shape, as well as a strange rustling noise that may have been the sound of people whispering just at the edge of his hearing. Whatever was causing the noise, it made his spine itch and the hair on the back of his neck stand up - which wasn't exactly a pleasant experience, considering he'd never had hair before. He shifted slightly into a more defensive stance when a red glow filled the area, illuminating in grisley detail the swords, the girl, the blood...

"Holy shit," he breathed, his eyes widening at the sight. There was no damn way anyone could survive that kind of damage, and it had to be some kind of miracle that the girl was even still alive at this point, though Raph knew from experience that with those injuries she wouldn't be for very long. As much as he hated having to do so, he forced himself to look away from those eyes and focussed on the swords instead. Whatever had done this to her had to be stopped, before it claimed any more--

"HIMEMIYA!"

Shit, someone who obviously knew the girl was here, and by the looks of it willing to just leap in without realising that by this point it was pretty much a lost cause. She had a sword, which was something at least, but against floating weapons? Even Raph knew diving in head first would probably end up with you being headless.

"Whoa, lady! Wait!" He made a grab for her in the hopes of stopping her from doing anything stupid, but with how worked up she seemed to be, he wasn't sure if that'd be enough even if he did manage to catch her in time.

[exbride.livejournal.com]

As instruments, the swords were simple, medium-length blades, but their numbers made it seem like there were hundreds. The ones not able to find a place to stab at Anthy instead swirled furiously in a circle about the center of the Sun Room halls. Anthy was the point at which they revolved, but they were possessed by and made alive by human-like qualities. The whispering did not stop.

"Witch," they hissed again, jostling about the bloodied girl. She should have been dead, but Anthy merely bled and twitched in place -- her eyes widened almost imperceptibly when a familiar face appeared and called out her name. Everything froze as an eerie quiet replaced the rustle of movement from the swords flying about.

More blades repositioned to point at the pair of patients. The strange red glow suddenly dimmed in intensity and spread about all four halls; when four swords zipped directly at the human targets, two for each, their rapid movements were a bit shrouded by a decrease in visibility, but they glimmered in the dim light and could be heard whipping through the air.

They aimed to stab at any part of the patients that could be reached, flying over the rails. Anthy swayed in the background and whimpered softly, her shadow stretching out of sync with her actual form. It crept around the back by the Chapel and then disentangled from the wall as a tangible being, impossible as it seemed, gurgling into existence like a living ink-spot. On hands and knees it crawled up the hallway to the left, still vaguely person-shaped and moving slowly.

It appeared to move towards Utena.

[scarefaux]

[From here.]

Speaking of the Horrible Hallway, it seemed strangely devoid of witches and somethings- or it did until the pair reached the center of the hallway. The Scarecrow had thought briefly that maybe he'd just been unlucky until this point, and that the hallway was no more horrible than the rest of the institution. The closer they got to the area above the Sun Room, the more apparent it became that this night would be no less dangerous than the others.

The Scarecrow stopped as he heard the sounds of clanging metal- that was certainly a sound he'd not expected to hear when roaming the halls. Ahead, flashlights were moving wildly, glints flashing in the dark during a scuffle. "Look there!" he whispered loudly to Abe as he pointed a finger in the direction of the action.

He wasn't sure what to make of the situation. Whatever was out there- the Mangled Witch or somethings or perhaps worse, whatever worse could possibly be- would probably see them trying to sneak around, even if it was distracted with other patients. At the same time, that altruistic part of him didn't want to leave those being attacked to fight it alone- unless they were handling it well enough alone, in which case he didn't want to get in the way. Not being the fighting sort was a tricky balance that-

He was over-thinking again. Now wasn't the time for that! He shook his head before asking, "What should we do?"

[bprd-fishman.livejournal.com]

Good. Lord.

Abe's hand flew up to cover his mouth even as he squinted to see the tormented mass more clearly. It wasn't another Persona, but it wasn't anything else Abe had ever had the misfortune to lay eyes upon. It looked as if there was an actual person inside the mass of shadow and blades, but they would be past the point of rescue by now. Abe had seen too many corpses to feel any but the smallest of regret at their torment.

The others, though...Abe wavered, quietly thumbing off his flashlight. His training said to stay and protect humans from that which they could not comprehend, to beat back the darkness whenever it sprang up. But his duty was to the Scarecrow and to discovery of a way to kill this place and he couldn't protect all three of them at once.

Abe crept closer, back against the wall and pausing at the corner of the hallway. "How fast you can you run?" he whispered back to Scarecrow, nervous eyes focused on the monstrosity. "We can get by while they distract it." And beyond it would be a matched pair of doors, he was sure of it. There would be symmetry.

[scarefaux]

While he wasn't exactly sure what was happening in the center of the hall, the Scarecrow figured Abe was the professional at this sort of thing- he had said that, right?- and that going with his instinct was probably safer than going with his own. Broken brains were sure not to work well, and he'd promised himself he'd not make any rash decisions for the night.

"Oh trust me, I'm quick on my feet," he answered with a nod, his grip tightening on his flashlight. If they were going to make a break for it, he was going to be sure to not lose his light. He had dropped it plenty of times without running as it was, not to mention trying to use it as a weapon against the Mangled Witch. It wasn't effective on her, and it was likely it would be just as lame against whatever monstrosity was in the darkness ahead. "If you think we should high-tail it out of here, I'll be right behind ya."

[dual-worlds.livejournal.com]

((From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/816084.html?thread=66146004#t66146004).))

They hadn't proceeded far into the hallway when Spock slowed down. In the dim lighting, he was barely able to see a humanoid form apparently floating in mid air. If he wasn't mistaken, two others were involved, carrying themselves as though they were engaged in combat. It was difficult to gain a full grasp on the situation -- only that the floating figure appeared female, and that some sort of odd substance or energy was emerging from its center and enveloping it. More than that, however, it was likely hostile as well.

Although Spock did not wish to leave civilians locked in a dangerous situation, the fact remained that neither himself nor Dr. McCoy were equipped enough to handle the conflict. As it was, becoming involved would serve as more of a hindrance than a help. Furthermore, if they stopped now, they would be unable to complete the task of locating more supplies. It was only with sufficient supplies that they would increase their chances of succeeding in future engagements with the institute's unusual creatures.

Attempting to pass by unnoticed was the most logical course of action. Should that plan fail, Spock knew he would need to give the order to retreat.

Expression stoic, the first officer glanced toward McCoy in order to make certain he was with him, and moved closer to the wall. They both knew the supposed location of the pharmacy; he trusted the doctor to move along with him as they tried to circle around the conflict and make their way to their destination.

[hes-deadjim.livejournal.com]

McCoy heard the scuffle before he saw it. It was a strange clang of metal, several thuds and the tread of different set of feet, followed with the smell of blood in the air. McCoy started to lift the flashlight before he thought better of it. He cupped the flashlight instead, blocking out most of the light instinctively. Even with the beam mostly covered, he could see at least two humanoid shapes fighting off a strange mass. Then one of the shapes cried out something (a name?), and McCoy knew then with a sudden horror that they were patients. The doctor started forward, instinct saying to help them somehow.

Spock glanced back at him pointedly: his meaning was clear. The look stopped him from taking another step. The blasted hobgoblin actually wanted to just walk on right past as if they didn't see anything? McCoy frowned at him but pressed himself against the wall. He scooted up closer to the First Officer as they moved, enough so the Vulcan could hear him.

"Spock, we can't just leave them to it," McCoy said quietly. Neither he nor Spock had a means of defend themselves, much less anything on the way of offense that he could see. But leaving those patients to their fate wasn't right. Somewhere in that icy logic of his was a set of ethics. Spock might be one of the most cold-blooded men he'd ever known, but McCoy knew by now that there was a strange set of honor and morals in there somewhere. Even he had to see this was wrong!

[dual-worlds.livejournal.com]

The situation would have been different if they were carrying better equipment. If they had possession of their phasers, for example, there would have been little question as to whether they were even capable of lending help. But the fact remained that they only had one weapon between them -- a blunt object that couldn't be solely relied upon to maintain their own safety, much less drive one of the institute's creatures away. Furthermore, the glint of a patient's sword wasn't lost on Spock, and it was apparent that they at least had the means to make an escape if they needed to.

This was not their battle to fight. Not only that, but Spock had an obligation to make certain that he and McCoy did not put themselves in more danger than necessary.

"Their blade is better suited for combat than our current equipment, Doctor," Spock murmured. "They have the means to retreat if they so desire. Our presence is not necessary and may prove to be more of a detriment than a relief." McCoy may not have liked it, but pressing onward toward their destination was the most logical choice.

By now they had reached the intersection near where the pharmacy was supposedly located. They would need to dart to the north if they wanted to reach the room without being brought into the conflict.

[witchoftruth]

[ from here ]

More explanations would have to wait until later, Erika realized, as they stepped further down the hall. A glance at their surroundings confirmed her assumption that they were now right above the Sun Room, but it was occupied already; by a pair battling what looked like a truly grotesque monster. From her vantage point, Erika couldn't even make the thing out as a human, so "monster" was really the only way to describe it.

How fascinating! She wanted to get closer and observe how the monster fought, but even she wasn't quite willing to risk it. Her detective's authority had already been stripped... Who knew what other stupid rules might have been placed on the gameboard? One that prevented her from dying could have been introduced. There was no rule against the death of a detective, though that was because no one was stupid enough to kill the main character. Troublesome!

She looked to the north, nodding her chin to a room across the way that was barely visible in the moonlight. The doors were quite large and already open; so long as the monster remained distracted, it looked like a safe enough distance to observe.

"Over there," She whispered to the man, though whether he would follow was up to him. What a shame if he died, she didn't get his name yet. Erika hoped it wouldn't come to that.

[itneverwas.livejournal.com]

Dr. Landel, such was the name of the one who had succeeded from pulling a nonexistent being - a mere shell - from the nothing to this world. A world that at least consisted of an mental healthy facility carrying the same name as the one in charge, yet further details remained part of the unknown. Xemnas had yet to hear an intercom announcement as well.

At least the girl had remained useful thus far. A detective (or so she said, as it was certainly remarkable she was so young of age. At least it explained her behavior of confirming that what she had been told) named Furudo Erika, and it was a name she desired in return. The name of a nonexistent man, but Xemnas had been about to offer it regardless when it became apparent that such matters would have to wait.

The scene that unfolded as they continued down the hall was a remarkable one. Aside from the obvious landmark that was the railing overlooking an unidentified area in the middle, the hall was a battle field. A pair was in the progress of battling a monster Xemnas could not quite identify. It was most certainly not a Heartless, nor anywhere similar to the rat he had encountered earlier. It would seem these 'monsters' were rather varied in appearance, yet it leaved their capabilities up to debate.

He, too, wished to observe it further in the hopes of discovering what it was capable of, yet the situation was a dangerous one. Without his abilities readily available, it would be unwise to remain within harm's way. It was no matter of cowardice, he could not even experience anything near the emotion of 'fear', but a mere case of being practical.

For now, he decided to follow the young girl. He was unfortunately not familiar with their current surroundings, though he noticed the door in the direction Erika had nodded in.

[witchoftruth]

[ to here ]

[petalwitch.livejournal.com]

Aerith was silent for a little while as she led the way. She couldn't help but wonder, though. It was so odd... What were the odds that Zack knew two members of AVALANCHE? And Cloud... It was all too much.

"Zack, did Cloud... say anything?" she started as she turned a quick left toward a railed area that overlooked the Sun Room. Aerith was about to stop in her tracks, to turn and look at the man who followed her, when something caught her eye. A figure, suspended above the Sun Room with... something impaling her body. She almost dropped the flashlight, stopping abruptly.

"Wh-what is that?" she whispered, horrified. Was that... a girl?

[zack-fair.livejournal.com]

Following after Aerith diligently, Zack found himself kind of surprised that she had so little to say about Yuffie. It seemed more than just a random coincidence that they'd both ended up meeting the same weird girl, after all. However, when his friend instead brought up Cloud, Zack started to wonder if that had distracted her from everything else he'd said.

It made sense. If Cloud had mentioned anything about him, that probably would have been a big deal for Aerith. Zack honestly didn't know, though, since he'd missed out on so much. He didn't even know how long Cloud and Aerith had known each other, let alone what they'd discussed.

Her question was enough to throw him for a loop. "Say anything?" he echoed. "About what?" It sounded slightly ominous, the way she'd asked, and Zack felt his stomach start to knot.

However, that whole train of thought was completely derailed when Aerith stared off at something in the part of the hallway they'd come into. As he turned, the girl who'd been hanging above the area had already made it to one of the railings, and another girl was facing off against her.

More than that, there was some guy who'd been stuck to the wall, and he was already struggling to get himself out. It looked like they'd stumbled on a fight in progress, and Zack was torn over how to deal with it. The would-be hero in him was screaming to get involved, but this seemed personal. Just jumping in might not even be wanted, for all he knew. Besides, he had Aerith with him, and neither of them were particularly well-armed. When the girl had somewhere she wanted to be, it didn't seem fair to drag her into something unrelated just because of his own instincts.

"Where from here?" Zack asked, and his tone was suddenly firm and controlled. As if he was on a mission rather than just having a fun time with a friend. He reached out and grabbed for Aerith's wrist, wanting to make sure she stayed close to him; safe.

[petalwitch.livejournal.com]

Aerith couldn't look away. The girl... There had been a hole in her torso with shadows pouring out and a sword in her hand. Moments ago she'd hung impaled by countless blades. The flower girl had seen monsters, all kinds of twisted-looking creatures in her adventures, but this seemed more disturbing somehow. Something was deeply, deeply wrong. Gathering all her courage, Aerith's fingers tightened around her "weapon" as she readied herself to do something, anything to help.

That was when she felt Zack reach out and take her wrist. She looked back at him. It was easy to tell his instincts were the same. He didn't want to sit back and watch other people fight off one of the creatures this place had thrown against them, but here they were. No materia, no real weapons to speak of. Aerith wasn't even sure some of her abilities would even work here.

She listened then for a whisper. For a shriek. Even a jumbled mess of voices overwhelming her with the urges she'd grown to trust over the years. Nothing came. Gaia was still silent. Possibly because the ground they stood on wasn't even the Planet she'd known all her life at all. Aerith squeezed her eyes shut and nodded.

"This way," she replied as she took a turn and looked for any door that looked like it might open easily.

[girlsandgadgets]

[From here.]

Just as his light brightened, Edgar shut it off, throwing out an arm to stop Yuna. The familiar sounds of clashing metal rang throughout the stretch of hallway ahead of them- there was a skirmish happening somewhere in the darkness. While he was sure he could fight decently with his bare hands, flesh did little to defend against the blade of a sword.

"It seems our good fortune has run out," he said, taking a couple of cautious steps into the hallway. From where they were standing, he couldn't see who was fighting in the corridor, though he did see something odd: there was some sort of structure floating in the gap above the Sun Room. "What is that?"

[forcalmeternal.livejournal.com]

As Edgar threw out an arm, Yuna aimed her light down—a half-remembered tactic to mask their presence while they discussed tactics for ambushing an enemy. Or if they were going to flee. "Is that...the sound of weapons?" she murmured. Hopefully not, but there was something there, and—

At Edgar's question, Yuna cautiously raised the light again. And then had to jerk it away a moment later, even though the light hadn't been enough to illuminate it that much and Yuna had only gotten a glimpse. Nothing good, she thought of saying, but that just seemed...very obvious. "It's—It's...I don't know. What—what do we do?" she ended up whispering.

[girlsandgadgets]

Edgar took one step forward, then another, trying to get a closer look at the mysterious structure suspended above the Sun Room. It was only after his third step he started to get the picture from the dim lights moving around the form: it seemed to be a mass of swords, held together by some unknown force, and- was that a person at the center of them? He had to stop himself from turning on his light again to get a better look- it was likely this being wasn't simply a tortured patient, but something more sinister or uncontrolled- an enraged Esper came to mind. Celes had warned him that this place was full of dangerous beings, and seeing the clash that was occurring before him, it seemed she'd been right. While he wanted to aid those defending themselves from the monster, he had to consider Yuna's safety, as well as the fact that he'd be more of a burden than an aid without some form of weaponry.

"Unless you've got a strong amount of magic on your side," Edgar said over his shoulder, "I suggest we run, as it seems we're ill equipped to battle something of this nature." He indicated the eastern side of the hall. "Where we're headed is over there, down a passage at the far end of the hall. With any luck, this demon won't notice us."

[thatmaskedchick.livejournal.com]

[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/816084.html?thread=66422484#t66422484).]

"Batteries are good."

Dean sure was easy to soften up. Ruby gave him a sly smile, wondering if she should have started working on him like this at the beginning, over a year ago. Maybe it would have been a little easier if she had.

Oh well. Hindsight was 20/20, and Sam had always been the priority here, not Dean. Getting chummy with Dean made life more bearable, yeah, but whether or not he liked her didn't matter very much beyond that. By Ruby's time, at least, Dean had played his part. He'd taken Alastair's offer.

And that was that.

When Sam offered his knife, Ruby allowed herself to look appropriately shocked and grateful. "Seriously? You okay giving me this?" She took the weapon, handling it expertly. That, at least, she didn't have to fake. It felt good to have a knife back in her hands, even if it wasn't the knife. It wasn't nearly as heavy as what she was used to, but it would work just fine. "Thanks. I mean, really. Thank you."

Ruby was still fingering the knife, flipping it absently in her hand, as they entered the next hallway. What she saw there stopped her abruptly.

Her first thought was 'ghost,' because there wasn't much that could create an apparition quite this...unusual, but she wasn't convinced. There was something off about this one.

[exbride.livejournal.com]

[OOC: Not entirely sure if it's my turn proper, but if you need me wait a few more posts, just shoot me a PM!]

When the young woman in this small group of people paused, Anthy stirred. From her place at the center of the halls, she could observe anyone who lingered instead of deciding to pass through quickly. The swords clanged and creaked about her frame, metal bustling against metal as she writhed in the air.

The pause was just long enough for a few to dislodge, stained with blood at the tips, and zoom forward to make a bid for the young woman standing nearby. Exactly three swords rushed down on her, their aim just slightly off to keep from potentially making fatal stabs, but zipping fast in the dark.

Deep gashes in any limb they could reach to start with would be ideal.

[boyking]

When you were on the hunt, you at least knew what the hell you were watching for. Demons left sulfur, temperatures dropped around spirits. Werewolves stuck to their hunting grounds.

Flying swords? That was a different game, all the way on the never saw that one coming end of the scale, and considering everything he'd seen in his life, that was a pretty impressive place on the spectrum to occupy. Seemed to be happening a lot.

Sam was one step behind Ruby when the flash of movement came at them, didn't have time to process anything in particular, just thought, What the hell?, and reached out instinctively to yank her back.

"Ruby!" Even with his hand on her arm, he was already tracking across the hallway, trying to—spirit, maybe, had to be, except it was impossible to tell. It clearly wasn't corporeal suspended like that, not like the creature from last night, and that essentially scratched off kill it as an option, and shit, either way, they really didn't have time for this crap. Didn't have time, didn't have...anything. Dean was still busted from last night and all the nights before, and Sam wasn't exactly in perfect shape, either.

He wasted no time in trying to push on forward. "Move, come on." No point on checking up on Ruby; she could take anything, and as long as she could still move, that was good enough. He just didn't need his brother taking a hit. Again.

Flying swords, Jesus Christ.

[thatdamnedninja.livejournal.com]

[From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/816084.html?thread=66476500#t66476500)]

Yuffie took in the scene, dark eyes unblinking. Yup, she'd been right; this was special counselling, it had to be. Not something she wanted to deal with. Not something she wanted anybody else to deal with, either. Her instincts nagged at her, indecision striking home in her gut, but she forced it all down and kept going forward. She'd have liked to help, really, she would've. It wasn't her fight, though; even with her shuriken, there was every chance that all she'd do is get in the way. And, she told herself firmly, she had other responsibilities tonight.

Something unsettlingly like pity sparked, down deep underneath. Special counselling was no picnic for anybody involved. With a soft intake of breath and an even softer sigh, Yuffie slipped and weaved through the shadows with all the expertise of Wutai's greatest ninja.

[Going here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/828629.html?thread=66478293#t66478293)]

[dual-worlds.livejournal.com]

((From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/827034.html?thread=66524314#t66524314).))

Whatever had been guarding the hallway was still there. That much was obvious. Whether it was engaged in battle with another patient was still unclear, though quite honestly, Spock didn't believe they were in any position to become involved even if that was the case. Dr. McCoy may have thought him heartless for thinking so, but the fact remained that it was his obligation to consider their actions in the most logical manner possible. After all, he wasn't in command of his life alone. McCoy's safety was important as well.

From what Spock had gleaned from the patient-made maps, more supplies were probably contained in the eastern area of the floor. That would take them away from the fighting in this area. Perhaps this was the floor's primary guard, in which case it was possible rats would be their most pressing concern until they managed to find useful items.

After glancing toward McCoy, he faintly inclined his head to their left, as if to indicate that was the direction they should take. He imagined the doctor would not be pleased with their ignoring the guard on this floor and anyone who may have been involved with it, but that discussion was already over and behind them.

[hes-deadjim.livejournal.com]

McCoy wasn't pleased at all, but this time he kept his mouth shut. He was still smarting from Spock actually pulling rank. Spock had always had plenty up his sleeve to effectively end a debate half the time (some of the time, McCoy amended. Spock was usually losing the arguments), some of them pretty good... but he'd rarely ever fallen back on using rank to shut down an argument or debate, maybe because he knew it was the one thing McCoy couldn't contest.

He followed the Vulcan wordlessly, even as he tried to glare holes through the back of his head.